'Monster' alligator in Florida goes viral after South Carolina woman shares video of close encounter

A "monster" gator in — dubbed "Fabio" — has been turning heads as it has been spotted strolling around a park in Polk County.

The gator, which many witnesses claim to be at least 13 feet long, has been going viral since a South Carolina woman Suzy Griffin Paul snapped a short video of the creature crossing a path just feet away from her at Circle B Bar Reserve (1,267 acres of protected land) in Lakeland in late December.

Paul's roughly 25-second clip of the gator has garnered more than 1.2 million views on Facebook as of Jan. 7.

"Unlike the crocodile, the alligator has a broad head. The alligator uses its powerful tail to propel itself through water. The tail accounts for half the alligator's length," Defenders describes on its website. "While alligators move very quickly in water, they are generally slow-moving on land. They can, however, move quickly for short distances."

Jennifer Earl is an SEO editor for Fox News. Follow her on Twitter @jenearlyspeakin.